Abstract
Closing yield (YG) and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) gaps amongst smallholder farmers are critical to ensuring food security and environmental sustainability. Here we report a comprehensive analysis of a data set derived from farm-surveys and previously published studies in a typical high N input area of China. Using scenario analysis, farmers from both sources were divided into four rice production levels to assess the YG and NUE of smallholder farmers. Farm surveys showed that rice yield and partial factor productivity of applied N (PFPN) averaged 8273 kg ha−1 and 23.1 kg kg−1 at regional-scale, with a potential increase of 21–43% and 33–52%, respectively. A wide variation in yield and PFPN across different types of farmer was observed. Optimized N management significantly narrowed YGs by 3.7% and PFPN gap by 63.5% on average based on the published literature. Multiple factors, including excessive N rates, small rice planting area (0.33 ha), the aging (51 years old) and low education level (6 years of education) of the major labor force, can partly explain causes of yield and NUE gaps. These findings provide farm-based evidence that centralized management, good agronomy plus advances in knowledge and technologies are essential for future agricultural development.
Highlights
Rice (Oryza sativa L.), the most consumed staple crop in the world, covers 29% of the global cereal area, and accounts for 31% of global crop production [1]
Rice yields achieved by farmers significantly increased from 8012 kg ha−1 in 2008 to 8883 kg ha−1 in 2014 (Figure 2 and Table S2)
N application rate averaged 358 kg ha and significantly increased by 15.8% from 329 kg ha−1 in 2008 to 381 kg ha–1−1 in 2014
Summary
Rice (Oryza sativa L.), the most consumed staple crop in the world, covers 29% of the global cereal area, and accounts for 31% of global crop production [1]. YGs are especially large in developing countries where smallholder farming dominates the agricultural landscape [4,5,6,7]. Closing the YGs between farmers’ actual and attainable yield is a well-established strategy to overcome the challenge of food security [8,9,10]. In order to attain high rice yields, farmers generally apply excessive N fertilizer, especially in some developing countries, e.g., China and India [11,12]. The N fertilizer application rates of China and India are the highest in the world, accounting for 22.3% and 12.5% of global N consumption, respectively [1]
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